Chapter 2 – Step on Her Shoes and in His
As if answering to her silent pleading, a loud sound of utensils dropping came from the kitchen followed by a sharp shout of "Shit!" Selphie stopped whatever her rambling was to turn to Ceri and asked, "What was that? Who's in your kitchen?"
Ceri simply shrugged; she no longer had the energy to form words.
"O well, anyways, how are you feeling, Ceri?" inquired Selphie.
"…i….an't…eeeff"
"What was that?"
"….i…an't….beeeefff, an…I…old…n…zz…!"
"You aint beef and you're holding what??"
"She can't breathe, and she's cold and dizzy!!" Seifer yelled as he emerged from the kitchen with a bowl of soup and crackers. Selphie and Ceri stared at the scene in shock. Or at least Ceri would have been if she was actually present in her mind. Currently, she was phasing in and out of reality and whatever the world sick people collapsed into.
Seifer being inside Ceri's dorm was indeed very odd to Selphie. Although she knew that Ceri and Seifer were on talking terms, she did not know that they actually spent quality time together, at least not in a personal dorm. Not to mention, Seifer apparently was cooking in said quarters, most likely for a sick Ceri! Something fishy is definitely going on here!
"Hey…now wait a minute, Ceri. What is he doing here, and Seifer, you cook??" questioned Selphie.
"I don't know, Selphie…I don't know…" Truthfully, Ceri did know, but her attention was now focused on the tray in front of her offering her comfort food and Seifer's hands making room on the table by collecting all her scrap papers and magazines.
Selphie then looked to the person now placing the spoon in Ceri's pale hands, expecting a satisfying answer; after all, he wasn't sick, and he looked like he knew exactly what he was doing with her friend.
"Look. Don't you have some kind of Christmas dance or whatever you have to go or something? Shouldn't you get going?" Seifer threw the question coolly at Selphie and chose not to voice his thoughts about leaving Ceri in peace. He knew that the wheels in the chipper girl's mind were already turning in ways that he did not want. He could try to correct their paths, but currently, Ceri was his main concern.
He watched the pale girl as she fumbled to use the spoon and lift the hot soup into her mouth. Her raven hair now only exemplified her fragile state with the contrast of her light skin. Her eyes were spaced out while staring at the contents in the bowl. Seifer knew that she was suffering the early and worst symptoms of the cold, and Selphie's high-pitched, cheerful voice was probably not the remedy to her illness.
Quickly, Selphie exclaimed, "Oh no! That's right! I was just going to drop off Ceri's gifts and then meet Rinoa and Squall by the stairs! They must be waiting for me right now! Bye Ceri! Bye Seifer!" She then whispered not so quietly, "We'll finish this talk later." And with that, she gave an enthusiastic wave and ran out Ceri's dorm door.
"That girl never stops, does she?" Seifer quipped, returning his attention to the sick patient. She nodded a bit and went back to trying to drink the hot soup. Seifer broke a piece of cracker and dropped the pieces into her bowl. She looked curiously at him, and Seifer's reply was, "Soup goes better with crackers. Fills you up more." Again, she gave him a mere nod and directed her focus to the food in front of her. Ceri barely had an appetite and had not consumed much of the solids.
Seifer wasn't much of a cook, but when he discovered from Ceri that she was sick and was not making herself food or taking medication, he knew he had to do something. He had called her earlier meaning to ask her of her plans for Christmas and found out through the phone conversation that she caught the cold, probably the night prior, but was already suffering under the symptoms so badly that she lost the will to do anything. The next thing she knew, he was at her door, demanding to use her kitchen and having her rest somewhere; as long as she was resting, that was enough.
He had cooked her canned chicken soup. There was not much in her kitchen. If there was something edible, most likely it was some sort of chips or other unhealthy snacks. So, after several minutes of digging, he finally found a few cans of chicken soup suitable for her to eat. The good thing was that he also uncovered a pack of crackers hidden underneath the piles of marshmallows and chocolates.
Seifer was in such a hurry to make her food that he had cut himself with the opened can lid. Those things were sharp and dangerous when they wanted to be. Soup didn't take too long. All he had to do was put it in the pot and wait for it to boil.
He then tried to rearrange the tray with all the essentials for Ceri to start her meal, a spoon, bowl, and crackers. As he attempted to do so, he had neglected the boiling pot, and in his hurry to take care of the readied food, he had knocked the whole tray down. Hence, the loud noises of commotion coming from the kitchen.
The two were quite close actually. She could understand him when he talks with his mouth stuffed with food, and he understood her words even if she was mumbling to escape his questions. It was no wonder that he deciphered what Selphie could not from Ceri. What made him angry was that Selphie, clearly knew and saw that Ceri was in no condition for company, continued to talk uncontrollably and asked Ceri unnecessary questions.
A/N: Thank you for all you visitors and my reviewer! ^^ I really do appreciate your response~~
Seifer's finally in the picture~~ Sorry if he might seem a bit OOC. I tried my best to keep him in character!